“Republican Rep. Chris Gibson of New York may run for governor in 2018, citing gun rights as a core issue. When it comes to combating crime, the congressman said Sunday on “The Cats Roundtable” on AM 970 in New York that he believes in “deterrence through the Second Amendment.” …”

“A St. Lawrence County Court judge’s decision to deny requests for lifting restrictions on pistol permits has left county pistol owners in a tizzy. Following a June 1, 14-1 vote by county legislators for a new local law that loosens rules regarding who is eligible to obtain an unrestricted carry-and-conceal pistol license, county pistol owners said they continue to be denied by County Court Judge Jerome J. Richards …”

That is because state law makes judges the local licensing authority, not the county legislature. Unless granted home rule authority by the state legislature (which they weren’t), the county legislature does not have the authority to make up it’s own rules good or bad. Judge Richards knows that and continues to do as he pleases.

I have received a bunch of complaints about him over the years and told those people their only choice is find an opponent and remove him when he’s up for re-election. Instead, Richards ran unopposed last year for another 10 year term.

“Sen. Thomas Libous, the state Senate’s second-ranking Republican and a Southern Tier political institution for more than two decades, was convicted Wednesday of lying to the FBI, a felony that will force his removal from office. A jury found Libous, 62, guilty of lying to federal investigators during a 2010 interview at his state Capitol office about an alleged scheme to use his influence to get his son a job at a politically connected Westchester County law firm …”

And with his removal, Republicans no longer have a majority in the State Senate.

“As he fights federal corruption charges, now-former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, R-Nassau County, has so far avoided paying for his attorneys with funds from his political campaign, a popular payment mechanism for lawmakers and state officials facing legal troubles. Some of his self-identified allies, however, have launched a new effort to cover his legal bill. A website for The Skelos Family Legal Defense Fund popped up recently, soliciting contributions to pay for Skelos and his son’s representation in federal court …”

“… The state Senate Republican Campaign Committee shoveled $50,000 into the re-election coffers of its disgraced former leader, Dean Skelos, just two weeks after he was busted on a corruption rap, rec­ords released Wednesday reveal …”

“… Pataki’s campaign raised only $255,795 through June 30, a paltry amount compared to the frontrunners who will be among the 10 leading candidates appearing in the first Republican presidential debate Aug. 6 in Cleveland. His filing with the Federal Election Commission doesn’t indicate he has any paid campaign staff. And he was renting only two campaign offices in Manhattan and Manchester, N.H. …”